These days it is relatively easy to catch reviews of recent releases, through googling. However, the same cannot be said of older movies. Taking advantage of the flexibility offered by this new discussion forum, let us do some reviews of older movies - 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s.

I hope to have a good collection of reviews of older movies, to rekindle fond memories and also to leave a legacy for future generations. Let us all Hubbers contribute to this effort. We will use Page 1 here as the index and anytime in the future, we can check out the review of a movie we are about to see.

I managed to watch Badhrakali on TV today. There were a few notables about this movie.

1. Heroine Rani Chandra died in an aeroplane crash towards the end of the shooting of the movie. A replacement had to be used to complete the movie. Rumours were abound that the names Kali and Badhrakali are jinxed. If you remember during the shooting of Kali, Rajini almost lost his life in fire.

2. The song Kettele ange athai paarthelaa inge was a huge hit. Ilayaraja was relatively new at this time and in this movie he also used devotional album singer MR Vijaya for cinema for the first and last time.

The movie begins in the divorce court and Sivakumar is granted divorce from his wife, Rani Chandra. Father-in-law Major accepts the divorce and laments that he is not fortunate to have a son-in-law like Sivakumar.
Sivakumar returns home to his wife, Gayathri, who pays him wifely duties!

Soon we learn that Gayathri is of unsound mind when Major fetches her back home. Through a series of flashbacks, the meeting and wedding of Sivakumar and Gayathri is revealed. Born in an orthodox family, Sivakumar is controlled in his movements. He laments that he is unable to enjoy himself. Gayathri turns on her charm on him and performs record dance for him – Kettele ange athai paarththelaa inge.

Gayathri passes her exams and decides to go to work. Their plans are interrupted by her pregnancy. The joyous couple celebrate the news with – Kannan oru kai kuzhandhai kangal sollum poong kavithai. Their family life is further strengthened by the birth of their daughter, Alamelu. Gayathri resumes her search for a job. One day she does not return from an interview and Sivakumar goes in search of her. He finds her in disarray running wildly. He brings her home and discovers that she has lost her mind.

From then on, his peaceful life is disrupted with Gayathri behaving strangely. One thing leads to another and eventually she kills their child by accident. Unable to accept the death of his daughter, Sivakumar files for divorce and the flashback ends.

In the meantime his mother Sugumari arranges for another marriage for him and after intial disagreements, he settles down with his new wife. He even gets to sing a duet with her – Oththa rooba unakku thaaren. In spite of the divorce, Gayathri visits the house from time to time. One day, unable to see Sivakumar in close proximity with the new wife, Gayathri physically harms her. Without any choice, Major leaves the area and settles elsewhere.

Even in the new place Gayathri goes missing from time to time and one day sits outside a temple and claims to be Kali. Another day she returns with a tiger tooth chain and with blood in her hands. She is calmed down by her parents and made to sleep. The next day she awakes and is of stable mind again!

She then reveals what led to her insanity. Apparently she becomes witness to an unexpected murder and runs for her life when the villain spots her. That is the time she loses her mind.
And when she meets him again, miraculously her fear disappears and she is consumed by hatred. That is when she recovers and now the villain is now in her pursuit!

In the meantime we learn that the villain was once the lover of Sivakumar’s 2nd wife and he is now out for revenge. He kidnaps their new born baby and leaves a note for her to meet somewhere.

It is now the end of Navarathri and on Vijayadhasami day, singer MR Vijaya is on temple grounds singing Aandha Bhairavi Agilaanda Eswari, leading to the climax.

The movie ends typically with evil being won over by good.

While the story may seem similar to the 100s of Amman movies made these days, Badhrakali was different in it being non-religious and with good acting. A rich movie made in black and white, with Illayaraja at his best, this movie is worth collecting.

madhu

23rd January 2005, 02:21 PM

nice writeup..

BTW in the original story of Maharishi, the heroine is alive at the end, but "in her sense", of course. May be the cruel end of Ranichandra made the director to change the climax of the film.

I heard, a look-alike acted for the climax scenes, where the lighting plays a major role.

Good points Madhu. Trivials like this will help to make the reviews more interesting. Yes, I did hear of another actress, but couldnt really differentiate, as Rani Chandra herself was a new face in this movie. I also missed most the early credits. :(

vijaymania

23rd January 2005, 07:17 PM

Punnagai Mannan (1986)
*ing KamalHassan, Rekha, Revathi, SriVidya

The movie starts out with two lovers (Kamal and Rekha) running away from their homes, Rekha leaves a letter behind for her parents. There is a beautiful song, Ethetho Ennam..., then the lovers commit suicide. However, things don't work out as planned because only Rekha is killed. Kamal Hassam hangs on by a twig. Then the police and everyone come to clear the scene
Enters the second Kamal Hassan who is a stand-up comedian and the uncle of the first Kamal. His match is SriVidya.
So moving on, the lover Kamal goes back to visit some cliffs and sees a young girl (Revathi) about to commit suicide. He converses with her and finds out that failing an exam was what drove her to do this. He convinces her to think stop.
The lover Kamal also runs a dance school and Revathi decides to join. Kamal first takes it easy but then realizes how serious Revathi is. In the meantime, Revathi manages to learn the truth about the lovers through the comedian Kamal. After some tribulations, the lover Kamal decides to move on and falls in love with Revathi. However, Rekha's family still has not gotten over their hatred for the lover Kamal, so right after Kamal and Revathi get married, they place a bomb in his car, which unfortunately the newly weds take. Along the way the car blows up and they die. The ending scene was heartbreaking, when the comedian Kamal carves Revathi into the rock where there were already carvings from Rekha and Kamal from before.
This is a movie which will always live on in my heart. I saw the version where the newlyweds die, but I heard there is a second version out there which I want to see.

vijaymania

23rd January 2005, 07:18 PM

I think Rekha recorded her voice in a tape recorder or something in the beginning, not a letter.

RR

23rd January 2005, 08:20 PM

NOV: no idea about the movie except the songs (& Rani chandra's death). There's one sirkazhi song rite?

RR

23rd January 2005, 08:35 PM

vijaymania: are you sure there's a second version? Never heard about it. I would think KB won't compromise on his climax.
The theme of the movie is apparently Kamal's idea, and KB went with it.
Music is big highlight. We all know ARR did music programming for the movie. Picturisation was also pretty good.

vijaymania

24th January 2005, 04:18 AM

Well, I recall someone telling me that there was another version. It's seems like the perfect movie to have to climaxes of. Both would have suited the story, but I felt that the ending where they both died was better, and in essence made it a memorable film.

madhu

24th January 2005, 07:30 AM

Yes! I saw both the versions.. But I dont think the second version is an approved one by KB.

In some southern districts, they just cut the las scene, and showed something like baskets on a road ( meaning.. the baskets with bomb is not in the car) and then the song..."jingala jinga".. ....
to make you think that bomb is removed from the car and the couple is happily living thereafter... this one was shown in some theatres and later removed..

the originla version is the end of hero and heroine and still going on in all places.

NOV

24th January 2005, 09:39 AM

NOV: no idea about the movie except the songs (& Rani chandra's death). There's one sirkazhi song rite?

I too have heard of the song, Odugiraal urulugiraal by Sirgaazhiyaar, but it was not there in the movie. The climax was immediately after M.R. Vijaya's song.

RR

24th January 2005, 09:46 AM

NOV: I've seen that sirkazhil song on tv. Sivakumar comes in 'maattu vandi', and this song is in background.

The main characters are psychiatrist Chandru (Srikanth), his girlfriend Geetha (Nirmala) and his patient Shobha (Jayalalitha).

15-year-old Shobha becomes a mental patient when she sees her husband die in a car accident two hours after their wedding. She is placed under Chandru's care 2 years after the incident, and returns to normal, thanks to his genius. She promptly falls in love with him. Chandru is aware of this, but does not say anything for fear of upsetting her delicate mental balance.

Shobha's parents want Chandru to get married to their daughter, but he declines since he does not wish to desert Geetha who is relying on him, Shobha discovers he is in love with Geetha, and helps Chandru & Geetha get married by overcoming Geetha's parents' objections.

On Chandru's wedding day, she wears a widow's conventional veNNira aadai, NOT because knows she she is a widow by convention BUT because the person in her heart cannot be hers anymore.

I was too young to watch this movie when it was released, but ever since I watched this movie for the first time a few years back I've always wondered how the movie audience of the late 60's(?) reacted to the strong dialogue and non-traditional symbolic behavior in the last scene.

Storyline:
The main characters are Shekar (Gemini Ganesan), Nirmala (Padmini) and Kumarayya (S.V.Sahasranamam). Shekar takes an interest in the welfare of recently orphaned Nirmala, and introduces her to Bharata Natyam guru Kumarayya. She learns & excels in Bharata Natyam, but also falls in love with Shekar who thinks she should devote herself to the dance exclusively. He gets married to someone else, he is unhappy, the wife is unhappy and Nirmala is also unhappy. Finally, the wife commits suicide, and Shekar & Nirmala get together.

This is a movie which belongs to my parents' generation (50's) and I've heard them say great things about it. But when I watched it a few years back for the first time, I thought it was too slow and contrived. Also, Sridhar is not consistent: at one point Shekar says he is attracted to Nirmala but her talent should belong to the whole world and not just to him; at another point, Shekar says he is only in love with her talent and not her. ???!! And, somehow, the wife is painted in a bad light as an arrogant lady because she challenges her husband re his feelings for Nirmala. ??!! Anyhow, five out of the seven songs are great with good picturization.

aadum aruL jyothi
MLV/Seerkaazhi. Sung for S.V.Sahasranamam and the nattuvaangam lady, for a formal Bharata Natyam recital by Padmini. One of my favorite MLV movie songs.

thuyilaadha peNN ondru kaNdaen
AMR/PS. Sung for Gemini & Padmini, this is a dream by Nirmala.

kalaiyae en vaazhkayin (pathos)
PS. Sung for Padmini. Nirmala dances based on Kumarayya's request, to make a very ill Shekar feel better. Both Nirmala & Shekar recall the happier days when this song was sung.

Imagine a movie made in 1954 without any songs. Imagine it with a shocking start: a murder and followed by an investigatioon. Narrated without digression with a slickness unparalleled in Tamil movies even till date.

The story moves from the murder of engineer Rajan (Sivaji Ganesan) in his own house and the landing up of an investigation duo headed by Javer Seetharam. The audience now, (and always) knows only as much about the victim and the murder as
the investigators know. The duo pick up hints and leads and proceed on with investigation. The investigation reveals more and more about the dead man. Each possible suspect has known one dimension of the dead man. An arrogant scientist , a caddish opportunist to his mistress, a scheming backstabber to his neighbour, a selfish gold-digger to his sister-in-law, a cold but in a weird way loving man to his brother, an ambitious and earnest young man to his teacher and an unpatriotic individualist to his wife.

In the small flashbacks each lasting about ten minutes each Sivaji, in arguably THE greatest perfomance of his career, brings to life that dimension, that the narrator of the flashback intends to highlight. In fact the movie traces the character over time and we progressively understand rajan's motivations for previous actions
as the narrative progresses. There are also six enactments of the plausible ways in which the murder could have happened and Sivaji is a treat.The clear characterization is achieved with minimal dialogue and extraordinary acting, which the viewer realizes not so much while watching but when he reflects after the movie.
JS's taut screenplay is also kept alive by keeping the audience guessing as we are led to view with suspicion each of the suspects who all bore grudges against the dead man. JS also sprinkles some naughty humour without upsetting the balance.

I am not much for technical details but I recall this one scene in a park where Sivaji meets his mistress and he is washing his hands off her in an extremely caddish manner. She entreats him but he remains unswerved.At the end of the scene it is as if you can imagine Sivaji with a tight lip and raised eyebrows playing arrogant. Now, why do I say 'imagine' ? That is because one does not see either of the players in that scene.We only see their silhouttes and in Sivaji's case the smoke from his cigarettes. The scene is of incredible visual appeal.

Honestly I don't recall much about the background music which is a lifeline for such a movie. The movie is set in the backdrop of WW2 in those days where Adyar was still navigable but I am in no position to evaluate the historical accuracy of art-direction etc. At the risk of sounding naive I can say that the furniture, clothing and Madras outdoors were pretty stagnant in style for a long time, so I guess there is no jarring inaccuracy.

JS acting is a little affected at times, terying to look like GKChesterton's father Brown. The climax unravelling follows a wee bit of melodrama but that can of course be excused. In fact the very last shot itself makes amends for the temporary dip in style towards the climax. It's not a very long movie and there is nothing exclusively Tamil in its appeal. Strongly recommended for those who haven't seen it and those who have seen it too :)

Whew ! I managed that without spoilers 8)

Shakthiprabha.

24th February 2005, 10:48 AM

AvaL appadiththaan

Cast : Sripriya, kamalhassan rajinikant

Director : bala(nto sure...can someone help me out?)

A very bold story indeed. A woman who has her way, her
unique style of dealing with people around. A total contradiction
to a normal indian woman, who shees away at the thought
of talking so called taboo things.

A woman who do not believe, womanhood is in being
veiled and shut inside 4 walls, mumbling to oneself
the woes of the same. One who calls spade a spade.

Her sharp unabashed tongue earns quite a lot of enemies,
even more, a sluty name for her. She cares not. There comes
a man, who gives her hope, who thinks the way she does,
who respects the woman in her, only to slip out quietly
because he is equally bothered about the societies illpoisoned words.

Being a woman, who has believed men, she is too careful
and scrutinising, before she finally falls for any man.
Alas there she does, for this man, to quietly
away with scar in her mind.

Men! Their ways to deceive....and women, their ways to
fall for it time and again. After all thats how world
functions!

Finally the woman, congratulates a normal village bred
spouse of her lover, quietly confessing,

"I am a woman whom every man would want...
you are a woman whom every man would marry"

Your review was rather brief :)
I'd also like to highlight Rajni's perfomance in that. One of his best (nearly up there with Avargal Ramanathan). Unrepentantly caddish and blase about it, he executed the riole with ease.I remember this one exchange where he responds to Kamal's sensitivity with signature blatantness

Rajni just steals the show from under Kamal's nose. Sigh ! where's that guy nowadays ?

Moreover, you said:
Men! Their ways to deceive....and women, their ways to fall for it time and again. After all thats how world functions!

I think that's a rather narrow (and convenient) reading of the movie.In fact the movie was a little more panoramic than just following Sripriya. Kamal's earnestness throughout the movie was highlighted, thus the men were not completely compromised. If we
try to reduce Kamal's character to a oneliner it may seem like an 'Oorukku Ubadesam' story (like that of the social-service lady they jointly interview). But his sincerety towards Sripriya was also depicted throughout the film.

In fact Kamal's final falter, marrying the country girl, is shown as a result of a protracted fruitlessness of his relationship with Sripriya. There was a thorough distinction in characterization betwee Kamal and Sivachandran. To sweep all that under the bromide 'all men are the same' mutes the richness of the film.

Basically the film is about superstition and how it affects normalcy in life. Sakunthala (Saroja devi) is born to SV Suppiah, whose wife dies at child birth. Thus Sakunthala is labelled as abasagunam. She is tortured throughout her growing years, with her father as her lone supporter. When she comes of age, marriage is arranged for her. This is the situation for the song varuga varuga endru solli azhaippar by P Susheela,

However, the money saved by her father in a chit fund is lost, with the closure of the fund. This time SV Suppiah curses her ill-luck. After a while he realises his mistake and alls well until the family who had seen Sakunthala rejects her, due to public talk of her abasagunam. Heart broken, SV Suppiah dies. Sakunthala now has to live up to the name of having caused the death of both her parents.

In the meantime we are introduced to Mohan (Gemini Ganesan) and his father Balaiah and Mohan's friend Santhanam (Thangavelu). Mohan is a man who is totally agaionst superstition and makes fun of the gardener who had delayed his departure because of the crossing of a cat on his path. The PB Srinivas song EthO manidhan pirandhuvittaan appears here.

The now orphaned Sakunthala finds solace in Santhanam's house. Santhanam promises her a job at Balaiah's office. Sakunthala meets Mohan who happens to be doing some gardening. Sakunthala assumes Mohan is the gardener, before the truth dawns upon her. They fall in love and sing orE kElvi orE kElvi endhan nenjilE - PBS and PS duet.

Mohan considers Sakunthala as his Lakshmi and introduces her to his family. And that's when the parents realise that Sakunthala is the girl they rejected earlier. Mohan's step mum is convinced that Sakunthala only can bring bad luck and is against the marriage. Marriage occurs in any case and the next day Mohan loses his job as a pilot! His superiro than tells him that it is an april fool's joke! Leading to the song April fool april fool engalOdu jaadhi by AL Raghavan and LR Eswari.

Several misunderstandings happens in the meantime, mainly caused by the stepmum and eventually Mohan is required to fly with confidential papers to somewhere. Stepmum prevents Sakunthala from bidding goodbye to Mohan for fear of unfortunate events. True enough the plane crashes! Sakunthala does not believe that Mohan has been killed and is furthered tortured and finally droven away from the house. She sings Irukkum idam engE iraivaa by P Susheela.

In the meantime, there are accusations that Mohan didnt die and sold out to foregn powers. Is Mohan alive? What happens to Sakunthala? The answers to this and the conclusion.... to be seen on the silver screen. :D

Unlike the common old movies where the actual story begins only after 30 mins of introduction, Sridhar’s Nenjil Oru Aalayam comes to the point immediately.

Dr. Murali (Kalyana Kumar) is pressured by his mother to get married but he refuses. Venu (Muthuraman), a lung cancer patient is admitted to Dr. Murali’s nursing home. Venu’s wife, Seetha (Devika) is none other than Dr. Murali’s ex-girlfriend! Thus the plot is set. The rest of the characters – Nagesh as attendant Peter, Manorama as patient Navaneedham, VS Raghavan as a Father and Kutty Padmini as another patient are mere dressings to this tale.

Dr. Murali summons other doctors to examine Venu and all conclude that the surgery will be risky, but both Seetha and Venu are adamant in going through it. From that day, 10th November, the date of surgery is set for 15 days later i.e the 25th of November. The entire story is narrated within that span. There are no flashbacks explaining neither the love affair between Murali and Seetha nor why it did not culminate into marriage. The whole movie is dark and the songs (not simply good songs but fantastic songs) further accentuate the situation.

Realising that his lover is another man’s wife, Dr. Murali contemplates in his song engirundhaalum vaazhga by AL Raghavan. The explicit lyrics underlines the fact why old songs have such a great effect on the listener, for it is very evident that the lyricist writes the song for the story, unlike these days where songs are mostly fill-in-the-gap variety with no relevance to the story line. For a sampling, ALR sings:

The movie goes on a fast pace with Dr. Murali hiding a photo of his former lover in a magazine, with Venu borrowing the same magazine to read to sleep! However, Venu learns of the real identities of the duo during a conversation between his wife and his doctor. He then sings the monumental thathuva song, ninaippathellaam nadandhuvittaal deivam Edhummillai. Pay attention to the lyrics.

In the meantime, Seetha and Kutty Padmini become very close and the only “happy song” comes on now, muththaana muththallavO.
Since it is a Sridhar movie, Kutty Padmini dies and a pathos version of the same song appears.

Venu then confronts Dr. Murali and asks him a favour, ie to ensure his wife remains a sumangali after his (certain) death. Dr. Murali, in the tight situation, agrees provided Seetha is acceptable to the arrangement. Knowing Dr. Murali’s position, Venu then confronts his wife. She replies to him, sonnadhu needhaanaa

Days fly by and the date of surgery arrives. With jittery hands Dr. Murali performs the surgery on Venu. Tense moments follow. Dr. Murali seeks solace in his room, unable to face the outcome of his surgery. The situation is akin to being between the pot and the fire. If Venu survives, Dr. Murali will forever lose his lover. On the other hand, for Dr. Murali to reunite with Seetha, Venu must die! If Venu dies, was it because Dr. Murali does not want him to live? Would Dr. Murali have a hand in his death?

Someone else arrives at Dr. Murali’s room and announces the outcome…..
Dr. Murali, with mixed feelings rushes to Seetha to inform her about her husband.
Seetha does not open the door…..
What happens next? Did Venu survive the surgery? What happened to Seetha? What happens to Dr. Murali?

- A Black and White poem on celluloid, I would say. Even after 40 years, it attracts you, absorbs you and makes it a compulsive view and I finished it in one go.

It talks about a man caught in between his lady love and his devoted wife and the upheavals in his life due to that forms the basis of this film.

NT and Padmini are studying(!) in the same class and they always have a fight on their hands. But NT is very much in love with Padmini and when they perform in a Dance - Drama competition at Madurai and later move on to Kodaikanal, he expresses the same. Padmini asks him to climb up a peak so that she will consider his love. NT suffers from Agoraphobia (fear of heights) and he feels giddy while climbing up and almost swoons down when Padmini realises the problem and she accepts his love.

Back home, NT has a cousin residing at his house (Murai Penn) played by KRV who takes care of the the entire household works as her parents are no more and NT's mother had also passed away. She is so fond of NT that she would do anything for him. She has a desire to marry him and NT's father (Nagaiah) being her uncle also wants the marriage to take place. But KRV accidentally comes to know of the love between NT - Padmini and changes her mind. Nagaiah asks NT to marry her but he refuses revealing that he is in love with another girl. His father becomes furious and starts looking for another bride groom to marry KRV.

Meanwhile Padmini leaves for her Brother's place. He is the only relative of her and she goes there to obtain his permission. She informs NT that she would be sending a letter on a particular date (Oct 10th). NT waits for her letter. The day comes and letter arrives. Alas! Padmini informs that she is getting married to another person as she could not go against the wishes of her brother. That literally shatters NT who becomes bed ridden.

But what actually happened was Padmini's brother, an Army Major gets killed in a road accident along with his wife and his three children have nobody left to look after other than their aunt Padmini. She decides to renounce her love and take care of the children. So she tells a lie so that NT doesn't come after her.

NT unaware of all these things is very upst and dejected. KRV takes care of him all the time which leads to the unpleasent incident of the bridegroom who comes to see her, accusing her of having a relationship with NT. That makes Nagaiah go wild and when NT realises how much his father and his cousin had suffered because of him decides to marry KRV. Interval

The second half opens and we are told 6 years have passed by. NT is now a big successful businessman settled in Kodai and has a daughter (Roja Ramani) studying in a prestigious school there. Nagesh who was earlier the professor of the College wher NT - Padmini studied is the Principal of the College and Asokan is the Correspondent. Padmini who had put her nephews and niece in a boarding school has now joined in this school as a teacher with the recommendation of Nagesh and she is the class teacher for Roja Ramani. KRV makes her accept to take Private tuition for her daughter and she comes home or taking classes.

Eventually the meet between the old love flames happens and that starts an emotional upheaval in NT and Padmini's lives. The Family life of NT - KRV also takes a beating and the child being a witness to a emotion charged meet between her father and teacher is also physcologically affected. Added to that the correspondent who has an eye on Padmini spells trouble for her by getting her dismissed from service because she has not played ball to him.

Seeing things going out of hand, NT and Padmini decide to meet up and this is overheard by KRV who also decides to leave NT's life as she feels that Padmini should take her rightful place. In a place in the hill where once they expressed their love the old lovers meet up and Padmini asks NT whether he is ready to renounce everything including his wife and daughter and come with her. What NT replies paves the ending of the story. Of course no prizes for guessing. It is within the conventional cultural parmeters but your heart feels for the lead characters.

Will come back on performances

Regards

NOV

11th October 2007, 07:14 AM

As for as Sundar character of Iru Malargal is concerned, NT had given out a solid but subdued performance. He portrays two different faces of the character. In the first half he is all agile and brings out a person madly in love with the girl of his liking. Second half shows him as a matured family man and a successful entrepreneur and later when he is torn between the two women, the turmoil he undergoes and how he expresses them!

The slim looking youngster starting of with the majestic Madhavi Pon Mayilal steals your heart. The gait, the pose and the silmisham he indulges in during the song all make you start liking the person. The way he climbs up the hill and his confession of the fear (again he proves he is beyond any hero as for as the image factor is concerned. Remember this was in 1967 when image mattered a lot)
The scene where he meets Padmini in the night at Kodai when he expresses his desire to be with her always, you should see his body language. Again Mannikka Vendukiren brings out the best in him. Cut to Madras, he is the son who is little hesitant to stand before his father and speak. He is a person who is loved by his cousin but she is afraid of him. When his father asks him something he replies and it is not audible to his father. "Enna Sonna-e" , NT " naan enna sonnen " endru varthaiyai mendru muzunguvathakattum, when KRV takes care of everything " Shanthi, en melathan unakku evvallu akkarai" atharkku udane KRV " Athu ungalukku theriyutha Athhan" -nu kettavudan dharmasangadamana oru mugabhavam kattuvar, class!

After refusing to marry KRV, later NT would ask her " en mela unakku viruppama"? She would reply" Enakku viruppam than" . Not expecting an answer like this, he would fumble for words, would not face her and try to say something. Seeing his embarrassment, KRV would say " Neega ennoduiya Mama pillai engiradhanale naan ungalai kaadhalikkanum, kalyanam pannikkanum-nu kattayam illaye". On hearing this his face would change and the happiness would return. Again a class act.

In the second half presiding over the school function, he would ask KRV to speak and when she delivers a neat speech, the astonishment and wonder that you can see on his face would be so natural. The Maharaja song would bring out the child in him. Once he meets Padmini his body language would undergo a complete change. Especially the scene where he goes to Padmini's house along with Roja Ramani where he would literally hurt her with his outpour is a treat to watch. His face would suddenly undergo a change when he realises his daughter had been watching him and how well he hides it and try to look calm.

Same sort of scene when again he confronts Padmini in the hills and this time Asokan interferes. Incensed by the teasing reamark made by Asokan, he loses his cool and slaps him. Again you can watch a range of expressions criss crossing his face.

Finally thinking that he is talking to KRV, he opens out his heart in his bedroom only to realise that he had been talking to Padmini instead and when she leaves informing him to meet her next day, he finds to his dismay that indeed KRV also had listened to their dialogue and again caught in between, the face again speaks.

To make it short, NT is at his best. Padmini carries out her role well but KRV as the all loving cousin initially and dedicated wife later surprises you with her performance without resorting to her customary melodramatic presentation which later came to be associated with her. Nagesh and Manorama provide the comic relief with Asokan making a brief appearance doing well (After Karnan, Asokan did only 3 films with NT. Kandhan Karunai, Iru Malargal and Uyarnndha Manidhan).

ACT (responsible for the story also), his second film with NT had done a good job. Surprisingly he steers clear of customary cliches. When NT agrees to marry KRV, the scene ends with a nadaswara melam and that's it. Same way when Roja Ramani is introduced, at the end of the scene, NT tells her "Thatha-kku Good night sollittu po", Roja Ramani wishes good night to the photo of grand father hanging on the wall with a garland. Same way in the scene before climax, KRV having asked Padmini to wait in the bedroom goes in to fetch the letter. Meanwhile NT comes in and he opens up thinking he is speaking to KRV. When Padmini runs away, NT finds the old letter written by Padmini and a cup of coffee on the table thus by indicating that KRV had overheard all the conversation. Good work ACT ! When talking about him, I always admire his courage to face competition. Knowing well that this is going to be released along with Ooty Varai Uravu, a rollicking entertainer, he went ahead and released and was rewarded with a 100 days run. (Of course ACT again repeated later this act twice when he again released Engirundho Vandhal [though a Balajee film] along with Sorgam and then released Bharatha Vilas just one week ahead of Raja Raja Chozhan and remember he met with success every time). Another scene where he again stuck to what the story demanded was the scene where NT slaps Asokan. Though anybody would have loved to include a fight there, he clearly avoided. (I remember when I watched it as an elementary school kid during it's first release, I was a bit dissapointed that there was no fight in this scene).

Last but not the least the combo of MSV - Vaalee. Amazing stuff. I am not a well versed in music to go into the nuances of the songs but they are all ever green hits. Again the art of Ventriquilosim had been used in 1967 itself in the song Maharaja oru Maharani song before it was used on a larger scale in Avargal 10 years later. Another interesting info about this song is Shoba Neelakantan who later became Shoba Chandrasekar (Yes, mother of Vijay) had sung for Roja Ramani. Ella paadalkalum then kinnathil thoithu eduthavai.

Madhavi Pon Mayilal

Mannikka Vendukiren

Velli Mani Osaiyile

Maharaja oru Maharani

Kaduval thandha Iru Malargal

Annamitta Kaigalukku (See the writing of Saradha about this song in Vaalee's thread)

Let me quickly run through the core theme of the movie and certain incidents which lead to the climax.

Ambigapathy, the son of the great Poet Kamban , the poet laurete of the Chola king Kulothungan , falls in love with the king’s daughter Amaravathy .

This Chola king was perhaps the last of the great chola dynasty which also followed the familiar path of great dynasties ending at some point of time.

There is a saying in tamil – KAMBAN VEETRU KATTU THARIYUM KAVI PADUM

No wonder that his son Ambigapathy possessed extrodinary talents and he was slated to even overtake his illustrious father who wrote Valimiki Ramayana in tamil.

Seeing his extrodindary talents and swayed by his youth, Amaravathi also reciprocates.love.

Any person with extrodinary talent and capabilities tend to be proud and arrogant

Ambigapthy’s extempore style of expressing things , his bold mannered approach and above all loving an emperor’s daughter was not taken in the best spirits by his peers and also by the king.

Despite advise by his Father MK.Radha ( Kambar ) , Ambigapathy could not give up his love and the same was the feeling of Amaravathy also despite being warned by the king severely.

When Kambar was in the process of writing the tamil version of Ramayana, there was another great poet by name OTTAKOOTHAR who was also part of the well recognized and respected poets during that period. The movie depicts this character as a man of jealousy and was always trying ways and means to defame Kambar in any manner possible ( I STRONGLY DOUBT THIS VERSION BECAUSE KAMBAR RESPECTED OTTAKOOTHAR HIGHLY AND INFACT USED A PORTION OF OTTAKOOTHAR’s WRITE UP AS PART OF HIS RAMAYANA TO HONOUR THE GREAT POET AS KAMBAR’s VERSION GETS RECOGNITION, OTTAKOOTHAR TRIES TO PUT HIS WRITEUPS INTO FLAMES WHICH , KAMBAR ON HEARING THIS, RUSHES TO RESCUE THEM. HOWEVER, HECOULD GET THESE LEAFLETS ONLY WHICH HE INCLUDES AS A RESPECT )

Back to the movie – Probably since Nambiar played the role of Ottakoothar and the director wished that charcter has to be depicted as a villain, Ottakoothar was shown as a very wicked person with all cunnigness to dethrone Kambar by all means possible.

So when Ottakoothar sees the love affair between Amgipathy and Amaravathy , he jumps into the fray and makes all out efforts to destabilize this development.

Ottakoothar also sees this opportunity to take a jibe at Kambar and his extremely close wrapport with the King. He poisons the King’s mind in a such a way that the king hates both Kambar and Amgibathy.

But poor Amaravathy, despite her being a princess was willing to come out of her royal life and wishes to marry Ambigapathy .

Is there any story of the past which has seen the social imbalance sorted out. Here also the King strongly condemns the relationship and as the situation goes out of control, the King ( under the influence of Ottakoothar ) knowing Amigapathy’s flair for poetry gives a dictum thatAmbigapathy should sing 100 songs without KAMARASAM. In other words, the order was that if Amgibapathy manages to sing 100 songs without any touch on kamarasam, the King promised that both can marry.

But if even one sentence touches sex or resembling it, Ambigapthy will be sentenced to death.

Before the D-day, Kambar pleads his son to give up his love life and be a good son as never in the world, this sort of extraordinary imbalance is possible- AN ORDINARY MAN / WOMAN CAN NEVER MARRY SOMEONE FROM A ROYAL FAMILY.

But Ambigapthy , highly self confident and arrogant, does not heed to his words and takes up the challenge to prove his capabilities

It’s a perfect setting now for a climax and what a song it turned out to be !!

Now the whole group of poets headed by Nambiar watch the proceedings

As Ambigapathy starts with a song on Lord Vinayaka, a flower will be dropped by Amaravathy who watches the event from a balcony from a hideout but not visible to Ambigapathy.

Ottakoothar insists that this being a Kadavul Vaazthu padal, this should not be considered as part of the 100 and hence the king and others discard this. HOWEVER,NEITHER POOR AMARAVATHY NOR AMBIGAPATHY WERE AWARE OF THIS.

Ambigapathy proves now that he is a worthy son of his illustrious father Kambar by singing all songs without Kamarasam.

As he starts the 99th song ( which both the lovers think that this the 100th song ), ONE OF THE EVERGREEN HITS OF THE GREAT COMPOSER G.RAMANATHAN AND ONE OF THE VERY BEST OF NADIGAR THILAGAM’s PORTRAYALS COME OUT.

Its SINDHANAI SEI MANAME

A minute observation of Nadigar thilagam will reveal that he actually casually plays the character with consummate ease – the portrayal of a young and proud Poet , unmindful of the harsh realities of life

This song has a unique pattern – THERE IS NO PRELUDE OR INTERLUDE !

G.Ramanathan always applied some carnatic raga for his songs . This song was composed using KALYANI You can hear the classic raga being applied in the best manner possible

Many actors have given lip movements and body reactions to carnatic songs but see the way in which Nadigar thilagam presents this song . OUTSTANDING !
Whenever the song is in low pitch, NT gives a soft look and when it goes in high tone, NT’s throat movements, the hands , the eyes are sync together and gives a typical impression which an established singer will give normally !
Well such is the power of NT’s observation which he presents with precision.

When he sings Sindhanai sei maname ( the starting part ) , he face shows SATVEEGAM . As the song touches the words, ANDAGAN VARUMBODHU AVANIYIL YAAR THUNAI, the whole body of NT reacts instantly.

Another feature of NT in this song is he shows DEVOTION up the point he completes the 100 numbers. As soon as the count down is over, a cheerful Banumathy comes out of the balcony where she was watching , hidden thinking that NT had successfully completed his challenge.

But as soon as NT sees Banumathy, HIS FACIAL EXPRESSION CHANGES DRAMATICALLY AND FROM NOW HE BECOMES A TYPICAL LOVER !

Amazing change in the facial expressions ( muga bhavam ) and words incessantly come out now on lust etc like – SATE SARINDHA KUZAL ASAIYA and from now his mood changes instantly and he starts singing with lust and describes the personality of Amaravathy unmindful of the consequences.

As Nambiar’s count is less by one, the decision goes against NT and he gets death sentence.

This movie also featured Kalaivanar NSK who incidentally passed away mid way . So NT gives a short but nice description to a NSK statue praising him aptly.

The hey handsome M.K.Radha of Chandralekha fame plays the role of Kambar with precision.

Nambiar was his ever usual self , very aggressive , cunning and like a fox waiting for opportunity and strikes but with an old man make up.

This movie is a JEWEL ON HIS CROWN for the great G.RAMANATHAN who virtually sprayed the movie with some classical songs like :

Nadigar Thilagam exhibits a youthful exuberance and with a stamp of arrogance and pride looks of a young poet who was willing to take on the challenges of the world through his tongue and flair for poetry.

This movie was one which was picturised during his youthful years.

I understand, Banumathy was elder to NT but still the pair had wonderful chemistry

Hats off to the great TMS for giving a mind blowing song for Nadigar thilagam making us believe as if NT himself had sung this gem of a song

I have not seen this movie being discussed here . Quite surprising !

NOV

11th October 2007, 07:27 AM

[tscii:fc9359c378]
Ponunjal (1973)

Directed by CVR
Written by Shakti Krishnaswamy
Music composed by MSV

The real title of this movie should be Pazhi. Its about revenge. It seems just a simple tale of a guy wanting to get the woman he loves but falls prey to basic human folly by the name of vengeance. But this is not a radical, liberal, anti-establishment man with simple request. NT’s character is a simple honest, culturally rooted man who lived his life in love with Usha Nandhini, and knowing well that the girl he loves is the destiny, but obstacles plays the role of fate. Can he defeat this fate (Vithi)? That is the central theme of this movie.

Usha’s is NT’s own Maaman Magal (uncle’s daughter) in this film. He has been comfortable with the knowledge that a married life with her is his destiny. That has been planted in his conscience since he was a kid.

He has a good relationship with her family, until that fateful day when they were deciding the marriage. His father, Sagasranamam, suddenly imposes the financial arrangement to his brother in law (S.V. Suppiah, who married his sister), intending very clearly to avenge the incident long time ago, whereby SV Suppiah demanded a large sum for the completion of Sagasranama’s own marriage. Sagasranamam’s father died, distressed and disappointed, and he had to work the whole thing out. It hurt him badly, and he had always been wanting to get back at SV Suppiah for causing his father’s death.

NT’s father is only vengeful, he is not evil. He loves his son and he gets remorseful later when NT confronts him. To NT, the question is, why all these years of pairing him with Usha – having it bloom into passionate love affair only to have this age-old revenge to break that?

The father – son confrontation may not be heated, but is tormentful. The son just want to know why put him on a emotional whirlwind. Death is also discussed and this breaks NT’s parents down. That is how seriously he is in love with that girl.

Suppiah’s reaction to Sagasranamam’s request for money is only guided by his ego. Simple. He is smart (finds out ‘treasure’ was planted by NT – well intended), and a good man….but ego drives the wedge between these two families further.

Though the instigator is Nambiar, the real bad guys is his father’s vengeance and his uncle’s ego. Most of the time, NT finds it easy to deride and get rid of Nambiar, but the issue is now the vengeful notion and arrogance that is taking toll to his love life and the memories of growing up with his childhood sweetheart.

There is an interesting mode of solution here – using different Thali to note sense of belonging. The society now has to ask themselves what to believe. When they were told that the Thali issued for the marriage is not the same Thali planned for it, they begin to question the own culturally rooted belief. The Thali in hand belongs to NT, but Usha is forced to be married to Muthuraman, a local rich man.

Muthuraman’s character here is not a bad guy. He is just a man used for occasion by Nambiar who is plotting revenge against NT. NT and Usha is now a victim of both NT’s father’s need for vengeance and Nambiar’s intention to get back at him. Muthuraman is just a pawn. But like his character in Savale Samali, he is important in the resolution of the plot. (I have great respect for Muthuraman. Watch Savale Samali and this movie, and you will understand why).

The casts have all done justice to their role. Suppiah and Sagasranamam were both superb. I have special affinity for Suppiah’s performance – like other greats like MRR, Palaiya (and NT of course), very unpredictable. Usha, who is not really a great actress (the only sore point in Gouvaram) is actually good here.

Nambiar himself proves what a talent he is. Alternating between comic (after the stage performance, when he is complaining to SV Suppiah about Usha, he’s a riot) and pure evil. What started out as a nuisance, becomes clearer as he charts out his intention. Being a Murai Maaman himselft to Usha, he made sure that she is out of NT’s reach, at the same time is not touched by Muthuraman (you got to see it to understand what I am saying). Pretty smart, for a small time village bad guy, but not impossible considering that those are his needs and man will think of anything to get what he wants.

Of course, NT is NT. Again, he plays a helpless character. He is strong physically, can shrug of Nambiar with just a few words, but he couldn’t defeat the evil that is his father’s vengeance. The confrontation scene I mentioned really can draw tears. What will you do when your own father, who is a good man, is instrumental in defeating your love affair? NT responded well in these scenes.

Poet laureate Kannadhasan used to say “Naam Munnorgal Moodargall Alla” (Our forefather’s are not stupid). I concur. At one glance, for present generation, this is just a black and white movie where past actors with white foundation and big wigs overact and cry a lot.

I don’t see it that way. This film was made during the year I was born, and yet, I see that it was not made by idiots. It was made by individuals who understood the complex emotions that guide human being’s action and reaction. It was made by talents that understood what is the motivation to many human follies. These are the talents that were the strong foundation to what we know as the glorious Tamil film industry.

This is a small film. But the scriptwriting, performance and of course the music is huge! I can’t cite direction, as it just looks apt and the director really depended on the talents in front of and behind the camera.

Of course, three of the songs are popular, Muttucharam sudi varum, Nalla Kariyam Nadakattum and the most popular of the lot, Aagaya Panthalile. Since the last song has been played a lot on radio, I find the second song more endearing. Those who are in love, has been in love and going through obstacles can relate to song.

Ponunjal is a small underated gem that should find audience again. Not an average audience, but who likes thought provoking scenes and great screen performances. It is sad that now most film are made only to please our senses…not our intellect.

ends.[/tscii:fc9359c378]

R.Latha

29th October 2007, 09:33 AM

[tscii]
Thyagaraja Bhagavathar’s fame began to soar with his second film Ambikapathi. With the success of Sathi Leelavathi, Ellis R. Dungan arrived in Tamil films. Bhagavathar, already a star, was cast as Ambikapathi and M. R. Santhanalakshmi as Amaravathi. She was already a popular stage actor when she migrated to movies, and this, her first meaty role, elevated her to stardom.

Dungan who did not know Tamil was, however, resourceful and innovative. He saw in the story parallels with Shakespeare’s immortal play “Romeo and Juliet” and decided to incorporate some of the play into the film script. The writer for the film was a Tamil scholar working under his pen name ‘Elangovan.’ Dungan marked out scenes from Shakespeare, which Elangovan translated into Tamil. One such was the famous balcony scene. The lines as Romeo takes leave of Juliet, “Sleep dwell upon thine eyes, peace in thy breast”, were translated by Elangovan as “Thookkam Un Kangalai Thazhuvattum! Amaithi Un Nenjil Nilavattum!” which MKT spoke. This kind of poetic treatment of film dialogue was new to Tamil cinema and created a sensation. Elangovan set new trends in film dialogue that would have far reaching changes not only in Tamil cinema but also in the political history of Tamil Nadu.

A Bhagavathar film meant melodious music and Ambikapathi was no exception. The songs were penned and composed by Papanasam Sivan.

T. S. Balaiah, a stage actor who came to the screen in Sathi Leelavathi, was cast as the villain in this film. A versatile artiste with remarkable range, he made a splash in Ambikapathi and rose to heights of popularity doing an amazing variety of roles in a successful career stretching over 30 years. He had a peculiar way of delivering dialogue, which endeared him to millions.

Serukalathur Sama, the noted actor was Kamban, and his hairstyle and beard were inspired by Rabindranath Tagore and suggested by Dungan.

Ambikapathi was produced at East India Studio in Calcutta and the main cameraman was Krishna Gopal. A fine technician, KG, as he was familiarly known, later made films on his own, and designed colour film laboratories, including the internationally acclaimed Gemini Colour Lab in Madras.

Background music was scored by K. C. Dey, known as the ‘Blind Singer of Bengal’ who blazed a trail in Indian film music. He also acted in many films as a blind street singer!

Dungan invested Ambikapathi with many features besides its dialogue. He opened a brave new world in picturising the love scenes of Bhagavathar and Santhanalakshmi, erotically suggestive and boldly intimate. He had Bhagavathar carry his beloved to bed, making the audience gasp with visions of what would follow after the fade out! He had Bhagavathar wink at his heroine, something unthinkable in those days. Bhagavathar’s wink not only became famous but was also regarded as his ‘trade mark’. Ambikapathi turned out to be a super hit. Bhagavathar was now a rage and soon would be a cult figure, and phenomenon, the first in South Indian cinema, a legend in his lifetime.

RANDOR GUY

NOV

20th December 2007, 07:58 PM

[tscii]
Oru Oothappoo Kan Simttugirathu (1976)

Cast: Kamalahassan, Sujatha, Vijayakumar and a host of new faces
Directed by SP Muthuraman
Music by Dakshinamoorthy

Ravi (Kamal) lives next door to Radha (Sujatha) and both fall in love with each other. Ravi’s friend challenges him that he can make Radha fall for him in one week. Unable to prove himself right, the friend attempts to molest Radha. Ravi arrives at the scene and a fight ensues with Ravi killing his friend unintentionally. Ravi is sentenced to life sentence and he requests Radha to forget him and carry on with her life.

Due to Gandhi’s birthday, Ravi gets a pardon after spending six years in prison. Film begins with Ravi traveling back to his hometown. Ravi happens to meet Radha who in turn spurns him and asks him not to interfere with her life!
Apparently Radha is already married to Vijayakumar!

Unable to forget her, Ravi lives a lonely and monotonous life. Radha enters hs workplace and pleads with him to forget her and start his life anew. Ravi says that it is impossible unless……

BREAK :D

Yes… unless Radha spends one whole day with him like as if they were married! “Don’t mistake me,” he pleads, “I will not even touch you.” He explains that he had built a lot of dreams on living together and this “one day” business will satisfy his “hunger.”

Sure enough Radha is at his door step the next morning and does all the “panividai” for Ravi. Ravi is satisfied and is prepared to go on with his life. But…..

Now Radha is overcome with emotions and is unable to forget Ravi!!!
She now requests that there is only one solution………!

Radha requests Ravi to come over to her house and pick her up that very night. Together they will run away and live together!

Ravi turns up!

Radha writes a long letter for her husband!

And then leaves the house!

Padi thaandinaal paththini!

What happens next? Will the lovers elope and live happily?
What about Vijayakumar?

The trailer was awesome and the Agatha Christie fan in me was expecting a plot along the lines of Orient Express. Movie started suspenseful enough with Sabapathy (VS Raghavan) being shadowed after having purchased jewelry worth Rs50,000 onboard the Neelagiri Express from Madras to Coimbatore. Sharing the same room is Ravanan (Cho) and a mystery girl Kalavathy. She takes him off the train to have food at Arokanam and then purposely makes him lose the train and disappears. In the meantime, Sabapathy is murdered and Ravanan becomes the prime suspect. CID Inspector Shankar takes the case and realizes that Ravanan is a naïve innocent party and begins investigations. How the case is solved is told in the next two hours. Poobathy’s brother in law (Ramadaoss) is made to look as the chief suspect, but you know how it will end. :lol:

As typical of crime movies of those days, there is the mystery man in hat, whose face is not shown. Rather the camera lowers to show him stamping out the cigarette. :D Of course there is the sub-villain – Asokan here – who is bald and wears an eye patch to boot. :rotfl:

TK Ramamoorthy stumbles through the movie with typical ear shattering music. The theme music sounds like the new song oru nayagan udhayamaagiraan! (You know who is the thief. :D ) Barring one, all the songs are not familiar.

1. In the train college students sing vaalibam oru velli thattu – TMS & LRE
2. At the Kalavathy Aalayam, two dancers perform to the only popular song, thiruthani muruga thennava thalaiva – Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi & PS (A very young Sri Vidya appears as one of the dancers.)
3. Jaishankar and his lover (yes there is one but with very limited role) sing naan kalaignanalla unnai silaiyaakka, melodious and sung by TMS with humming by LRE.
4. Cho gets to dress up as a woman in the fantasy dance number kalyaana pennai konjam munnum pinnum paaru by PS and LRE.
5. The final song is a typical cabaret song by LRE, kadavul madhuvai kangalil aada vaiththaan.

Neelagiri Express is barely interesting and the only positive point are the jokes by Cho, who has the best lines and gives an able performance Mr. Bean like. :D

groucho070

9th June 2009, 02:17 PM

Itheleyum CID Shankar peera? Wonder how many films he did with that name...but I understand they are not related. How nice if it was a series.

NOV

9th June 2009, 06:02 PM

Jayshankar? Series? :frightened: There are very few films of his that I like. :cry:

lovedeva_pj

5th October 2009, 04:11 AM

thanks Nov

Good information for the Sarojadev filn Panitherai

the film story goes with sarojadevi , Most of the film with gemeni the story line always goes with sarojadevi

It's not a very long movie and there is nothing exclusively Tamil in its appeal.

Is there anything Tamil in its appeal?

ssindhu65

16th March 2011, 07:34 PM

hi friends
where can i get the film motor sundaram pillai pl mail me ssindhu65@yahoo.com

RAGHAVENDRA

18th March 2011, 08:33 PM

Motor Sundaram Pillai had earlier been released as DVD by Raj Video Vision. Now an even more economic version has been released. This is available in all major outlets. For your reference the image of the covers reproduced below.
http://i872.photobucket.com/albums/ab289/ragasuda/MSPcovers.jpg